Nature and nurture: poverty and environment in Asia and the Pacific

This latest ADB publication provides an overview of poverty- environment interactions that show how poor communities in Asia and the Pacific have sought to break out of poverty through local actions that improved their environment.

In recent years, initiatives by the international community to address the links between poverty and environmental degradation have been increasing. These initiatives range from policy reform and top-down approaches to local, bottom-up actions by communities. This publication focuses on local actions, and provides a background to the present situation of increasing
environmental poverty and degraded environments. It shows how local actions, with support from governments and development partners, can turn this situation around to reduce poverty and bring about environmental benefits.